[I have no love]

Username: I have no love
Equid Name: Jinjang
Equid Age: 5
Story: (wip)

I had always been one that nobody looked up to. One that was shunned and given scornful looks when I asked to join in the other foals games. My mother tried to comfort me best she could but it didn't help. The only other person that was kind to me was the herd leader Bijak, the Wise One. He was old yes, but sweet and gentle, spending many hours of the day telling me stories of great heroics and courageous leaders. I was only one and a half when he passed away. Soon one of the younger stallions became leader but he was not ready for the responsibility.

A week before I turned two the herd was attacked. Three stallions came from the north, there hooves black as night and their screams left me shaking in terror. Our young leader ran and hid while they captured and left with seven of the herds mares and fillies, my mother and I among them. The life in that herd was horrible and I dare not tell it in to much detail.

We were led for a number of days over the hills to a bachelor herd, there the stallions where cruel to us, making the older mares produce many foals which the either drove away or killed. The sight of all those young ones sent of to die will never leave me. I was pretty much left alone until I was three, then they started to become interested in me. The would chase me until I was to tired to run and then.....but i will not speak of that anymore than I must.

The whole time we were with the herd my mother had been training with me in secret. teaching me to fight, to run, to survive, and when she finally passed away I was ready. That night I left the herd, sneaking away into the shadows. After i while I heard the alarm call of on of the stallions and the sounds of hooves pounded against the ground behind me. I ran.

For three days I ran, eating little, hardly sleeping, and drinking only a mouthful at a time, until finally i came to the valley. In the valley there lived the mustangs, they were proud beasts yes but still they were timid and scared, fro their leader had left them. In my heart I felt many things but pity was the most prominent emotion, so I went to them and offered to lead. They accepted my offer eagerly though I could see in their eyes that they were a little wary and doughtful.

[maluruloki]

Username: maluruloki
Equid Name: Mainiera (Welsh, "tall snow" - her lighter points reminded me of patches of mountain snow)
Equid Age: 3 years
Story: (I'll do my best to keep it short this time!)

Hours...days...who knows how long I had been plodding along. Each step made me realize that my feet felt heavier; I numbly watched the puffs of ash cloud around my ankles. Above me, the normally broad bowl of blue sky was shuttered with both patchy clouds and the amber fog of destruction. The wildfire had been swift and sure. One stray flash of lightning in a freak midday storm that had brought my world to a blistering halt. Behind me, the herd followed without questions - blindly, both figuratively and literally. They weren't my herd, no. I had been cut off when the wind whipped the flames higher than I could leap. I could hear my sister, mother, father, all calling me. What else could I do but turn my back on my home and spare myself? Selfish? I had thought so, until I had found them. After waking from a dreamless sleep the next hazy morning and rising to my feet, I had heard them, sheltered away in a hollow. Three wild mustangs, my relatives different only in build - not in spirit. The elder two, one young male and one mother, were both blinded. Stray embers, they told me, blown into their faces when a wicked blast of air caught a flash-flame. The youngest, not even a yearling, had looked at me with wide, terrified unblemished brown eyes, but had ultimately convinced the others that I wasn't to be feared. No, all I wanted was water and my mother had been sure to instill to me the location of the permanent waterhole. No sun ever dried it to the dusty bowl of despair that sometimes led others to perish. Call me desperate, whether for company, attention, gratitude...but I had them follow me. The littlest mustang kept her mother and the young male near with her constant soft chatter. Brave, strong little creature. I lifted my head and felt my heart lift as well as reality brought me out of my reverie. It was the Constant Point, that unmistakable landmark rock formation that sheltered the clear pool of life. I looked back over my shoulder. The three still followed, the youngest still coaching them along, and I saw her smile at me. I couldn't help but smile back. It took us still another few hours of careful sidewinding through the scattered boulders and piles of faintly-smoking coals, but when I found myself adjusting my steps for the inclined bank of the watering hole, for a moment - just a moment - life was tolerable once more. The scent of the sweet spring water was like ambrosia and I felt a shiver of relief shake my body as I began to suck up cool mouthfuls. The mustangs found the water's edge as well and the only noises echoing in the hollow were the sounds of satiating thirst. I glanced up and paused to watch the mustangs. I took in their ragged appearances, how smudged their coats were, how a few hairs on their manes were singed. I glanced at my own reflection, seeing both how haggard I looked and how different I looked. I looked so lean and leggy compared to them; my coat, normally a lustrous earth brown and my markings, normally cream, were all dirtied. I laughed under my breath. No, it didn't matter what I looked like and what they looked like. They were my herd and now my family. I would lead them as best I could...even if it meant being caught by the horsemen I could see now, far off in the distance. So be it... I thought. Fate, be kind to them...and to me.

[snow.]

Username: Pokemon :3
Equid Name: Cadbury
Equid Age: 17
Story: I was born in a small field far in the middle of no-where. It was a hard life because my Dad was the leader of the mustang and my mom frequently helped him. I spent most of my time alone at the field. No-one to play with, Not even a fly to keep me company. One day a wild wolf was drawn to the forest. I was 10 at this point. I was frightened and screamed into the foggy air around me. My dad ran faster than lighting past me when he noticed the fierce looking wolf. He fought hard and strong. The battle seemed to go on all day until my dad grew tired and lay on the ground. The wolf left as he was exausted but exclaimed he would be back. I shook my father but he would not move. I kneww it in an instant that he did not lie down to sleep, but he lay down in sacrifice. The wolf won. I wondered what would happen if he returned. M mom slowly walked up to my father and licked his wounds. It was faint, but I noticed a small tear fall from her eye. I stood strong and proud. I knew it was my destiny to take after my father as the leader of the mustang. I was theyoungest equid to ever be the leader but I believed in myself, I knew I could do it. From then on I have been through 7 years of hard work but I knew it was fate that my father died. My mother looks up to me now as I stand tall as if I was her husband. I knew me and my father were alike. Maybe I remind her of him in some way...

[horsy1050]

I am soo glad I don't have to read theses xD not becuase they are bad, but so long and detailed.

[*Ciroseth*]

Username: -{Seemingly Alone}-
Equid Name: Ashura
Equid Age: 5 ?
Story: Ashura was born a heathy beautiful baby. She was kind and rambuncious. One day, while climbing along the mountain ledges, her foot slipped. She fell and tumbled down to the plains below. She lay there, wounded and confused, until a herd of Mustangs passed by. The leader, a strong male named Forthcoming, thought Ashura was an omen. The humans had driven his herd away from their loved land and they hadn't found water for many days. Ashura became Forthcoming's new daughter and grew to be a good leader. She travelled with the herd for many months. The day of her 4th birthday, Forthcoming was captured by humans. He had grown weak from lack of a stable water source and fallen behind when the humans appeared. Ashura was his successer to the leader of the herd. She knew they must find water. The humans, she noticed, always looked well. She decided they must have found a watering hole. She led the herd to the humans camp by following the footprints in the dirt. As dawn came, she led the herd to drink. They were just arriving when a human appeared. They were all in need of water so badly, they drank anyway. Aszhura was captured by the human as she bent to drink. She whinnied and the other mustangs bolted away. She knew she may never see them again.

[canis,]

Haha, thanks horsy

And....
Judging in 1 hour!

[SpartanAmethyst]

Username:
SatiraAssassin

Equid Name:
Ischyrós

Pronounced "Is-kai-row-ss".
Her name means "Strong One" in Greek. She goes by Chy for short, pronounced Kai.

Equid Age:
She's roughly 4 years, but acts much more mature for her age.

Story:

The sound of hooves thundered through the canyon and throwing dust in it's wake. The yellow-orange cloud stung Ischyrós' eyes as she galloped valiantly behind her herd, taking the lead stallion's position. She neighed loudly to the lead mare, whom she had kept in position because she was seasoned and intelligent. "Turn left!" Her voice barely carried over the noise of the herd of 20, but she knew old Lyra had heard her because she took the left fork, which led deeper into the canyon. Chy turned her long, slender ears backwards and heard the faint galloping of the three wranglers behind them. She had to protect her herd. She neighed a command to find the nearest ridge and get up onto the plains, then nipped one of the pregnant mares who was starting to fall behind. She gave her a reassuring nudge and the grey mare picked up pace, her nostrils flaring and straining to take in enough oxygen to keep her going. Chy felt bad for having to keep her running this hard this late in her pregnancy, but it was to keep her away from the humans. She snorted as her thin yet well-conditioned legs easily kept her running, and thought about how she had gotten here. She could almost remember everything.....

~*~*~*~

The smell of honeysuckle was in the air. The wildflowers were blooming and fresh water from the melting glaciers ran from the highest peaks in the mountain range. A little Equid filly bounced and played, chasing the early-summer dragonflies as they flitted about near the swollen river. Her white-brindled coat shone a bright copper in the noontime sun. Her mother was grazing not too far away with the other mares in her family herd, most of them still swollen with foals that had not been brought into the world. She was a "strange one"; her mother had mated too late in the season, leaving Chy to be born mid-winter instead of the typical summer birth. It had been a seemingly futile fight, but out her own will and her mother's she had made it to spring and grown strong with the new grass.

Suddenly there was a loud squeal, the warning call of her lead stallion. Suddenly the herd came barreling towards her. She tried to move, but in the attempt to leap away her hind leg caught the mud and she slipped. Luckily the horse passed over her, some of their hooves missing her by mere milimeters, but she survived just in time to scramble up and take off after her mother. She was stronger than the younger foals and could run better, which allowed her to catch up and kept her from the grasp of the ropes that would steal Equids away, and usually they didn't return. One foal lost their mother that day, and Chy's owned mother took in the orphan as Chy had already weaned. The days following the human sighting were tense, but with no more contact herd life returned to normal.

Summer turned to fall, fall to winter, winter to spring, and spring back to summer. The years passed and the filly grew tall and strong, her coat turning darker with every winter. Finally her fourth birthday came around and she said goodbye to her herd. The day she left it stormed, the thunder rumbling and the lightning flashing violently. She approached her leaders and bowed her head, the stallion and mare both touching between her ears with their muzzles, a sign of their blessing. Then she moved over to her muzzle and nuzzled her one last time before she set off in no particular direction. She wanted to explore this earth, do more than just stay in the meadow and produce foals. Maybe one day she would have a mate, but not now. Not this soon. As the storm's intensity increased, she took shelter in a nearby cave, being careful of predators. As the days passed, Ischyrós' legs grew strong from the harsh travelling ever farther down into the prairie and wetlands, the terrain interchanging from lush mountain meadows, then to hard rock and clay plateaus, then into a brief period of marshy wetlands, and finally into the forest-lined prairies, small patches of conifers and pines growing irregularly. She stood stock still for a moment, her ears twitching back and forth as she surveyed the new surroundings.

After a moment she made her way forward, spotting animals in the distance. They were equines, but different from her kind. They looked like the ones the humans rode! She stopped and pinned her ears, unsure. Were there humans in the area? She snorted and gave a high-pitched neight. One of the mares raised her head, a beautiful piebald paint with one blue eye, the horse trotting up to her and sniffing her. "I am Lyra," she had said. "You are from the mountain spirits, aren't you?"

"Mountain spirits?" Chy had asked. "I suppose so, I'm from the herd of Equids that live in the mountains."

"Well I'm sure Firon would approve of your joining, so you are welcome to travel with us for as long as you like." In the following days she met the lead stallion Firon, a beautiful copper chestnut stallion whose coat shone like fire in the sunlight. Chy grew to love him, and she always looked forward to seeing him stand watch in the sunrise hours. Things were peaceful and she lived happily with her new herd, but was ever watchful for predators. But one morning, everything went wrong. It was early spring, and Firon had just been healing from sickness. One of the sentries had neglected to check a patch of conifers, in which his a hungry mountain lion just looking for it's next meal. The big cat crept up on Firon, silent as the grave until the very last moment. It roared and leapt onto Firon's back, sinking its claws into his shoulders and haunches and it's teeth into the back of his neck. The stallion panicked and bucked, trying to throw his assailant, but he was too weak. Chy had heard his neight and squeals and had rushed to help, Lyra gathering the mares and their foals. But by the time she had made it to Firon, he had fallen from his frenzy of chaotic leaps and bucks and the cougar had struck, sinking his long fangs into the stallion's jugular and suffocating him. Firon's rich brown eyes now were dead and lifeless, his blood smeared on the cat's lips. The sight send Chy into a rage, the mare charging and the cat. The beige and brown feline hissed a warning, but Ischyrós countered with a kick, turning and shattering the feline's hip. It would die slowly. The cougar hobbled away in pain, back into the trees. Chy looked down at the stallion's lifeless body and hung her head, nuzzling his cheek as she turned and slowly walked back towards the her. She would take command.

Suddenly Lyra came galloping up. "Ischyrós! The mares are safe. Where is Firon?"

"I'm sorry Lyra. The cougar got him before I could make it to his side."

Lyra hung her head for a brief moment in mourning, then looked up at the Equid. "It is alright," she said. "It wasn't your fault. You did all you could." The paint sighed. "We need a new stallion, but the colt who is our next leader is much too young."

"I will lead," Ischyrós said. "Until your son is old enough and has learned. You will still hold lead mare, as I'm sure that must be tradition."

Lyra nodded. "You will make a fine leader, Ischyrós. Let us get back to the herd, the mares need to be moved higher, where the summer grass grows sweet."

Chy nodded and held her head high, walking with Lyra back to where the herd laid hidden, waiting for the return of their leader. That night the herd was quiet except for the soft whinnies and nickers of foals to their mother. The months passed and the foals grew strong and fast, their legs toughening with increased use. It was mid-fall and the cold northern winds were just beginning to blow down from the mountains when the alarm was sounded from one of the sentries. There was a collective neigh as the mares signaled for their foals. Chy rushed over to the sentry, a two year old mare named Asai. "What do you see?" Chy asked.

Asai motioned with her head and Chy focused hard to see through the trees. It was humans, a group of three, just like before. They rode horses and carried ropes, talking and laughing as their horses cantered ever closer. Suddenly one of the men pointed and said something in their strange language, and the other two looked. They spurred their horses, heading straight for Chy and Asai. "Lyra! Humans coming in, three wranglers. Get the mares, we have to move!"

"What about the pregnant mare, Ryna?" She asked.

"We won't leave her. Just go! Head for the canyon!" As one the herd took off, aiming for the mouth of the plateau canyon, Ischyrós taking the lead stallion's position and bringing up the rear. She was the only thing standing between her herd and the wranglers. They galloped valiantly through the tight space, jostling and jumping, dodging rocks and long-fallen trees in their mad dash through the darkening rock.

After what seemed like forever she heard Lyra call back to her. "There's a fork, which way do we take?!"

"Turn left!" She yelled back. This would take them back to the plains; her mares needed to rest. She was especially worried for Ryna, the mare who was due to birth any day now. Chy slowed down a bit and listened; the hoofbeats of the cowboy's horses had faded. They galloped on until they left the canyon, then slowed to rest. From there they walked until morning, Lyra slowly leading them to the nearest watering hole. The horses and their leader drank and rested for a small amount of time before they heard the hoofbeats again. Chy whipped around. "Lyra take the mares! Your son is almost old enough, run on to the winter meadow. Don't stop until you get there."

"But Ischyrós-"

"Now!" Chy commanded, standing her ground as she saw the wranglers approach in the distance. Lyra gave a resounding call and the herd cantered off, melding into the forest as they moved on. She new Lyra didn't want to leave her, but it was best. She glared intelligently at the humans as they rode up and quickly lassoed the equid, the mare not even attempting to fight.

"Where do you think the rest of the herd went?" One of the humands asked.

"I don't know, but leave them. We can do with just her." Another lasso rested over her neck and, giving one last sad look behind her, followed the wranglers to write another chapter in her life's adventure.

~*~*~*~
((Quick save, still working)) Done 8D

[y i n]

my form's a wip

[Destrie]

who got it? you said judging in an hour yesterday... or have you not finished? (and you should finish soon, cause canis said she'd be judging soon...)

[Verdana]

Eep! I got her, I got her! This is the first one I've actually won! Thank you so so much, I promise to love her and cherish her in sickness and in health 'til death do us part. *hugs Amina* Thank you!